Cigar Assessor

Monday, May 6, 2013

Filler: San Andres, Mexico and fields from Estelí and Condega in Nicaragua.

A couple of days ago as I walked by my mailbox I noticed a package on top of the box addressed to the Cigar Assessor. Oh yeah, new cigars! I open the package to find the 1502 collection of Emerald, Ruby and Black Gold from Enrique Sanchez's Global Premium cigars inside. The next day, I dress the set, tested camera angles, place it in the proper position, put on some sounds of trumpeter Chris Botti and set my bottle of Natural Brew Draft Root beer on the end table. I now get to smoke the 1502 Emerald.

I pull it our of it's wrapper and got a strong scent of cocoa from the foot and barnyard from the stick. The foot on this stick had a portion of the wrapper covering it. Enrique refers to this as the Cigar Lock. The "Lock" is there to stop cracking or breaking. This well constructed, minimally veined, honey nut brown colored stick is boxed pressed with a green band with gold lettering which is simple and elegant.

I clipped the cap and tasted cocoa from the very open draw. I lit the foot and tasted notes of cedar and citrus from the first few draws. Later hints of leather and cocoa add to the flavors. The smoke started medium and changed to full and creamy soon after. The burn was a little uneven.

The nice grey ash with spots of black fell off a little past a third of the way in. The smoke was still kicking full and the burn was still a little uneven, reminding me of a roller coaster. I tasted hints of nutmeg, leather, saltiness and a sweetness in this section.

The burn evened out in the last third and the grey ash fell for a second time. The band came off without incident of tearing, cracking or glue stuck to wrapper. Smoke was still pumping out full throttle and I tasted, honey, leather, and nuts. I smoked this cigar until there wasn't any room for my fingers to hold it.

This was a great smoke. Later On I met with a friend and gave him one to smoke. He really enjoyed it and the burn stayed even during the whole smoke. If you get a chance to get some of these cigars, you should. You won't be disappointed and if you enjoy the San Lotano Connecticut you should definitely gives this stick a try. - May 5, 2013